Director Yeon Sang-ho / Courtesy of Showbox“It has been 10 years since I started making commercial films,” director Yeon Sang-ho said. “During that time, I spent years collaborating within commercial cinema and streaming platforms. While shooting 'The Ugly' last year, I began longing to work within a new system. For the next 10 years, I want to work in a different way from the past 10 years. I have a strong desire to try more experimental things.”Yeon, who helped expand Korean zombie cinema with "Train to Busan" and "Peninsula," has returned with his third zombie thriller, "Colony." The film follows survivors trapped inside a building sealed off after the outbreak of a mysterious infection. Its central idea is the "evolved zombie," a concept Yeon connects to questions about the collapse of individuality in the age of artificial intelligence. In a recent interview at a Seoul cafe, Yeon said he focused on expressing "collective intelligence, evolution and the harm they can cause" in an intuitive way. "I thought about how far humans and groups can evolve," he said.Since opening May 21, "Colony" has sold more than 3.1 million tickets and averaged about 100,000 tickets on weekdays. Yeon said he had only hoped the film would break even. “I watched the movie again in 4DX with my daughter, and the theater was buzzing,” he said. “It had been a long time since I experienced that kind of atmosphere, so I liked it.” The 4DX system combines traditional cinema with practical effects like lighting and environmental effects and moving seats.Returning to Cannes with ‘Colony’ "Colony" also brought Yeon back to Cannes. The film was selected for the Midnight Screenings section of the 79th Cannes Film Festival, where it was shown for critics and festivalgoers before its Korean release. The screening reportedly drew a seven-minute standing ovation. Yeon had previously visited Cannes with "Train to Busan" and "Peninsula." If "Train to Busan" proved the potential of Korean zombie films, "Colony" was designed to show how the genre could evolve further.“When I went to Cannes with 'Train to Busan' 10 years ago, the film didn't generate much buzz,” Yeon said. “But this time was clearly different. It seemed that expectations for Korean zombie films had grown after 'Train to Busan.' I feel proud of that. In particular, I could feel people wondering what kind of work the director of 'Train to Busan' had made this time.”Yeon said he worried about whether his intentions would come across during international media interviews, but found that reporters understood the film more accurately than he expected. “I also became much more relaxed than I was 10 years ago,” he said with a laugh.Some viewers have said "Colony" gives less room to individual characters’ stories than "Train to Busan" or "Peninsula." Yeon does not dispute that. He has described the zombie as the "protagonist of the film," and said that "Colony" keeps its focus on the infected beings’ evolution and the survivors’ struggle to escape. The story, however, did not begin that way.A scene from the film “Colony” / Courtesy of Showbox“The first draft of the 'Colony' screenplay was 168 pages. As a film, it would have been about 3 hours and 30 minutes." he said. Yeon said it included backstories for Kwon Se-jeong, played by Jun Ji-hyun, and Seo Young-cheol, played by Koo Kyo-hwan, as well as stories for the other survivors. "But to preserve the pace unique to the zombie genre, I boldly cut them.,” he said.Yeon said the cuts served the film’s larger concept. “In the end, when I thought about the overall concept of the film, I did not see individual stories as the core,” he said. “If 'Train to Busan' centered on the fear of a father who has to protect his daughter, 'Colony' focuses on contrasting the evolution and regression of humans and zombie groups. I wanted to leave the parts the film does not explain to the audience’s imagination.”Cast draws attention The cast has also drawn attention. Jun Ji-hyun, Koo Kyo-hwan, Ji Chang-wook, Kim Shin-rok, Shin Hyun-been and Go Soo star in the film. Jun’s appearance marks her return to the big screen after more than a decade spent on other projects, and her collaboration with Yeon has generated significant buzz ahead of its release.“Some viewers noted that everyone else was covered in blood, but only Jun Ji-hyun looked especially clean,” Yeon said. “In fact, Koo Kyo-hwan is also clean because he does not get blood on him.” He said he was worried about a later scene in which Jun appears wearing only a white T-shirt and jeans. “I wondered if she might look too shabby,” he said. “But she was Jun Ji-hyun after all. She did not look diminished at all.”Actor Jun Ji-hyun appears in a scene from the film “Colony.” Courtesy of ShowboxKoo, working with Yeon for the third time after "Peninsula" and "Parasyte: The Grey," plays Seo Young-cheol, a key villain who commits violent acts in the name of justice. Yeon said Koo’s interpretation gave the character vitality.“Koo is well-suited for unconventional roles,” Yeon said. “Rather than forcing an eccentric performance, his natural demeanor is unconventional. When we worked together on 'Parasyte: The Grey,' he once said, ‘I also want to become a parasite.’ So I handed him the 'Colony' script while thinking of a character with a similar type of ability.”AI, art and what comes nextYeon, who has built dark creature-driven worlds through "Hellbound" and "Parasyte: The Grey," also addressed the impact artificial intelligence is having on filmmaking, especially on visual effects. “I think the visual effects industry will change very quickly through the use of AI,” he said. “These days, the question people raise most often is whether results made by AI can be seen as art. But similar debates existed in the past. There was also debate over whether Marcel Duchamp’s works were art. In the end, I think such debates themselves make the arts richer.”A scene from the film "Colony" / Courtesy of Showbox The ending of "Colony" has prompted viewer speculation about a sequel. Yeon said he has already conceived a follow-up story, though it may not first appear as a film. “I think audiences may encounter it first in an immersive, game-like format,” he said.Yeon’s zombie films have continued to evolve over the course of the last decade. He is also preparing his next film, "Paradise Lost," while serving as producer for the sci-fi drama "Human Vapor," which slated for release next month. “I have a strong thirst to work within a new system,” Yeon said. “That is why I think my desire to keep making something has stayed alive. Going forward, I want to challenge myself with films made in more unusual ways.”This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.